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Ice Storm Aftermath

The City of Fayetteville has begun the second phase of storm debris collection resulting from the ice storm Jan. 22 that brought down trees and tree limbs across the city. During round one, which began Jan. 25, city crews collected 3,980 tons of debris, according to City Corporate Communications Director Kevin Arata. “That’s 10 times the amount of limbs normally collected during a similar timeframe,” Arata said. The Environmental Services Department is not able to predict how long round two will take. Residents do not need to call in to schedule a pickup or report storm debris. They’re asked to leave tree limbs at the curb, not in the street. All available equipment and staff have been assigned to expedite the cleanup. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Landlocked Demolition Dilemma 

It’s been almost a year since a house at 4705 Belford Road in Montclair was destroyed by fire. The city of Fayetteville opened a file on the property within a week giving the absentee owner an opportunity to receive an insurance settlement. Up & Coming Weekly reported about what followed several weeks ago. The owner never responded and failed to attend hearings. Code Enforcement Director Scott Shuford said that a demolition order was issued on Nov. 30, 2015. This followed months of “20 major steps that were taken” to get the house torn down, said Code Enforcement Manager Bart Swanson. It is, after all, a process. Step 21 has stymied the process. The contractor can’t get his heavy equipment up the hill to the house. When the State Department of Transportation completed construction of Glensford Drive and the roundabout at Belford Road where the property is located, they forgot something. Engineers built the roadway complete with concrete curbing around the property with no access to the burned out house on the hill. There’s no driveway… nothing, according to Shuford.  The dilemma hasn’t been resolved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Military Suicides Are Up

The Department of Defense has released its 2014 Suicide Event Report, which disclosed the number of suicide attempts and deaths among U.S. service members. The report does not include a breakdown of suicides at individual installations. There were 269 deaths by suicide among active duty service members in 2014, compared with 259 deaths the year before. Data was collected by the services and supplemented by information from the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System. Fort Bragg authorities do not disclose suicide deaths as such. When asked about such deaths, Fort Bragg says they remain under what seem to be never-ending investigations. The Criminal Investigations Division rarely, if ever, discloses cause of death in suicides. When suicides occur in the civilian domain, however, investigations are normally concluded in a day or two. Service members and their families in crisis should seek help immediately by contacting the Military and Veteran Crisis Line at 800-273-8255.  The Military and Veteran Crisis Line provides 24/7 confidential support to all service members and their families.

 

 

 

 

 

Cape Fear Valley Health Foundation Hosts Walk-a-thon to Help Children

Anyone wanting to walk for a good cause and help a Boy Scout with his Eagle Scout Project is welcome to participate in a fun 3k / 5k Walk-A-Thon at 10 a.m. on Feb. 20 at Jordan Soccer Complex. Proceeds provide toys and other needed items to support the therapeutic treatment for children admitted to Cape Fear Valley Hospital.

There is no entry fee, however, a donated item must be provided. Please, no broken or over-loved toys. Used electronics are acceptable if they are in working condition. Suggested items include: socks, onesies, baby blankets, scarves, hair ties or ribbons, stuffed animals, Beanie Babies, coloring books and crayons, individually packaged hygiene items, DVDs (current movies), video games – PS3, XBOX 360 and Wii games, plastic toys – Legos, toy cars, action figures, gift cards for teens – ITunes, GameStop, electronics for older kids – IPods, game systems.

   For any questions about the event please contact Laura Cole at 494-2154 or liftupmyhands2jc@aol.com.